Primary school students will only return to school for one day a week if 2m distance remains

Primary school students will only return to school for one day a week if two metre social distancing guidelines remain in place.

Primary school pupils in Ireland will attend school for one day per week and secondary school pupils for two days per week if the two metres social distancing rule remains in place in September.

Education Minister Joe McHugh said if the rule remains in place, students will engage in blended learning from home on the other days.

He said: “I want a common-sense approach to reopening schools in September. Where possible, children and young people and staff should be far enough away from each other so they are not breathing on or touching each other and this will have to be accompanied by additional hygiene measures in schools.

“I want to be very clear with everyone around the impact of one-metre and two-metre social distancing in schools. At primary level the two-metre rule would mean almost all pupils attending school just one day per week.

"At post-primary level, this would mean most pupils attending schools two days during the week.”

He said if it was reduced to one metre, primary school pupils would attend for two-and-a-half days per week and for secondary school pupils, they would attend on a half-time basis.

Children will adapt to new restrictions when they return to school in September, Minister Joe McHugh has said.

He said the overall objective is to get everyone back to school in September but the Government has to plan for all scenarios, adding: “Young people have bought into the process of why they have to practise good hand hygiene and social distancing.”

He said more funding will be provided to schools to help them pay for additional hygiene equipment and changes to classrooms.

In terms of the one-metre and the two-metre distances, the one-metre would mean 50% of pupils return to school and that means some students would come in two days a week and others would come in three days a week.

“I don’t want to envisage a situation where we have a process where we leave children behind – by the end of August, children will have been out of school for a six-month period.

"I have to weigh up the risks with the gaps in education, the risk of regression and the failure to provide an education – but we have to ensure it is safe for pupils, teachers and staff can return.”